Concrete finishing tools, such as floats, jointers, screeds and the like, are used to provide a particular finished surface adjusted to a freshly poured concrete mass. In the conventional method of use of such concrete finishing tools, an operator moves the tool across the surface of the freshly poured concrete, usually in a back and forth manner, before the concrete mass cures or dries.
It has also been recognized that the addition of a vibratory action to the concrete finishing tool aids in the creation of a surface, characteristic, such as a smooth surface and in the case of a jointer, possesses a groove to control cracking of the finish concrete slab.
In the past, various tools have been proposed to provide a vibration motion to concrete finishing tools. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,231,331, 6,988,851, 7,097,384, and 8,230,760 show concrete vibrating devices in which an external motor is mounted to a handle or shaft and linked to a remote vibration mechanism by the use of a cable or gear mechanism.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,139,217 shows a concrete finishing tool in which a power source is placed within the handle of the concrete finishing tool and provides power to vibrators that are located atop of the head of the finishing tool adjacent the concrete.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,632,569 and 7,465,121 show hand held cement and concrete finishing tools in which a vibrator is placed within the handle structure of the tools and powered by a battery that is also found in the handle. These tools do not show a method for controlling the vibration within the handle, other than by control of electrical power to the vibrating mechanism.
A vibration imparting device for a concrete finishing tool that is self-contained and between the handle and terminus of the concrete finishing tool and allows for optimum vibration of the vibrating mechanism would be a notable advance in the construction arts.